Review - HiRoads

HiRoads is a flash animation game designed by Newgrounds.com user MonkeyOdyssey. This SkyRoads remake was submitted to Newgrounds.com on November 14, 2009 and features 9 music tracks that accompany the game.

Gameplay

The objective of HiRoads is to maneuver a bouncy ball through obstacles. There are 6 different roads: Green Roads, Blue Roads, Orange Roads, Purple Roads, Red Roads, and Brown Roads. These six roads all feature different landscapes that correspond to the color of each road. In each of these color-labeled roads there are 3 tracks for a grand total of 18 different playable tracks, each with a different set of obstacles. All tracks are already unlocked, which means players can start playing any track they wish to play right off the bat.

Use the arrow keys to scroll through tracks and change pages to view more tracks. Press enter or spacebar to select the track. Once the track is selected, you will be taken to that track. You will see a stationary ball and a track before you. Use the arrow keys to move. The Up key moves the ball forward. Holding the Up key increases the speed of the ball. Use Left and Right to move left and right. Pressing Down will decelerate the ball. The speed of the ball is indicated by a bar at the bottom of the screen. As your speed increases, the bar will fill with color. The distance of the track is indicated by a blue bar below the speed bar. As you race through the track, this distance bar will fill with a darker blue color and let you know how much further you must travel before you reach the end of the track. At the bottom-right, you can view the FPS (frames per second) of the game and also toggle sound effects and music. The gravity of the track is also displayed.

Running into any obstacle will destroy your ball. Try to dodge obstacles and get to the end without blowing up. There is no time limit and no life count. The game will, however, record the number of tries you take to complete all tracks.

Game Controls

Use arrow keys to move around. Up accelerate, Down decelerates.
Press spacebar/x/z to jump.
Press Esc while in-game to exit to the list of tracks.

Review

HiRoads is an addicting game great for short breaks, since the tracks do not take long to complete. It requires good reflexes and timing to get through all the tracks. The music is also a great addition to the game. However, the environment can be improved. Though the landscape does change between roads, having the environment change in-game would be much better and more visually captivating.

Overall, with 18 different tracks of different obstacles, HiRoads scores a 9/10. Improving the game visually would make this game perfect.